The Shikon Miko's Diary
by Sara Nero
Summary: Two years after they had defeated Naraku, the well once more opened but this time, it sent her further than she expected. There, she finds herself forced to aid a young Sesshomaru to keep the Western Lands stable after his fathers death. The problem? The Western Lord was anything but fond of the rather outspoken and untrained Miko that seemingly lived to drive him to his wits ends.
1. Chapter 1

The Shikon Miko's Diary

Arc 1

 _Ara-Mitama_

 _Day 1: Fate's Tool_

Kagome was no morning person.

Never was, and will never be. Maybe she simply wasn't because her body was accustomed to going to sleep in the early morning hours due to her past rather messed up sleeping-schedule when they were still hunting the sacred Jewel Shards years ago but then again, she never really liked to wake up early in the morning in her younger years either.

So here she was, standing at the tram station with a big cup of hot tea in her cold pale hands in hope of not freezing to death while she waited for the rest of her history class in the cold December air.

They were supposed to meet up in five minutes and whereas some have already arrived, they didn't seem to be in what she would call high spirits either.

A bittersweet smile crossed her lips.

Just peachy.

Still, she couldn't possibly blame them. She wasn't too delighted to be standing in the cold at seven in the morning with a meek three hours of sleep either but she couldn't deny that in comparison to them, a small and _unbelievably_ annoying part of her couldn't help but be excited.

It was the same excitement that was apparent ever since their History teacher announced that their new topic would be the _Sengoku Jidai,_ and that in order to formerly introduce this time-period to them they would visit one of the most famous museum in Japan that contained countless of valuable artifacts and paintings of that time this Monday.

At first, Kagome was having mixed emotions about the trip.

It's been two years ever since the well closed and whereas the wounds in her heart have somewhat started to heal already, she feared what pain the confrontation with her past would cause her.

The other, admittedly larger part of her was beyond excited to finally find out what had happened during her absence, what had changed and what stayed the same. It was the unknown of what had happened after their victory against Naraku that fueled her excitement and anticipation and this trip would pose the perfect opportunity to find out after her rather disappointed research in the internet.

"Kagome-chan!"

Kagome lazily lifted her tired blue eyes upon hearing the familiar voice calling her name and was greeted by the rather amusing sight of Ayumi and Eri waving comically at her from the further end of the station.

The Miko couldn't help but smile at the sight and lifted her free hand to greet the duo with a small wave of her own, taking another sip from her now lukewarm tea as she waited for them to reach her.

She could instantly tell by their expressions that they would have liked to be anywhere but here at this early hour, preferably in their beds, and wondered just how much of a walking corpse she must look like after staying awake for most of the night.

As soon as her two friends have reached her, Eri instantly emitted a groan as she moved to stand beside Kagome. "I seriously hate Okida-Sensei for doing this to us." The girl muttered under her breath, clearly not too keen on going on this class trip at the crack of dawn either. "I mean come on, no human being with a heart would let us suffer like this on a Monday morning!"

Ayumi merely shook her head at her friends rather dramatic nature and gave a halfhearted sigh in return. "Come on Eri-chan, it won't be _that_ bad. Who knows, maybe it's actually going to be pretty interesting."

Kagome couldn't help but nod in agreement. There always was a fifty-fifty percent chance of their school trips either ending surprisingly well or as a total catastrophe and admittedly, even though she was quite excited to go to the museum the miko was still having mixed emotions about it.

The group of three kept on their light chatter until their teacher finally arrived as well and called them together in order to check the attendance list.

After Okida-Sensei had successfully written down who was present and afterwards exclaimed his displeasure upon noticing that almost half of the class were apparently sick on their day of their trip, the class started their journey.

It took them two hours until they have reached Nikko and fortunately for them, it was only a twenty minute walk from the train station to the museum.

Some of her classmates have used the time in the train to sleep whereas the rest of them chattered about the latest gossip of their school what resulted their mood to somewhat lift.

Okida-sensei was using the time that the walk offered them to tell them some facts about Sengoku Jidai but since Kagome already knew most of what he was telling, she only halfheartedly listened.

It went on like this until they reached a rather isolated part of the city and a rather huge building in the far caught her blue orbs and she felt her excitement bubble up once more.

They have finally reached it after what seemed forever and Kagome couldn't fight the smile that crossed her lips. Her anticipation was becoming more and more evident with every step that they were taking towards it and for a moment, all of her worries were forgotten.

Okida-Sensei, who was leading the group, seemed pretty excited himself and it was then that Kagome realized that he truly seemed to be a fan of everything that was related to history.

Poor guy would probably faint if she told him that she had practically lived the past.

As soon as they had finally reached the museum, their teacher came to an halt in front of the flight of stairs that lead to the large, wooden entrance doors and turned around to face them.

"Well class, as you can see we have reached our destination." He declared in a stern voice as he run a hand through his short black hair. "I expect you to be at your best behavior and show nothing but the utmost respect towards our tour guide and the artifacts. They are very valuable and you wouldn't even be able to repay them if you worked as a doctor for the next forty years of your life."

At that, Ayumi hummed lightly."I guess there will be pretty valuable things in there." She mused out aloud as she glanced at the museum with sparkling eyes.

She was no huge fan of history but she didn't consider it boring either and Kagome considered herself lucky that she could at least talk to someone about their trip and the artifacts that they had seen on their way back home.

"Are there any questions left?"

The students remained silent and their teacher gave them a nod out of content in return.

"Perfect. Oh, before we go inside, remember that we won't be the only ones in the museum so let's not leave an all too bad expression behind, alright?"

The class fell into a fit of groans but nodded nonetheless and Kagome couldn't help but shake her head at her classmates. One would think that at the age of nineteen they would have somewhat matured but that obviously didn't seem to be the case.

Her teacher then proceeded by walking up the stairs and Kagome and the rest followed suit, but just as she had reached the last step a sudden brush of something against her reiki caused a shiver to run down the length of her spine and her legs to come to an abrupt stop.

Whatever it was disappeared as fast as it had appeared and Kagome couldn't help but frown out of confusion as she looked at her surroundings through narrowed eyes in hope of finding anything that seemed out of place.

Much to her confusion however, everything seemed to be totally normal and Kagome mildly wondered if she was turning paranoid already.

 _I probably just imagined it. Calm down Kagome, this is your time and demons don't exist._

Why it didn't sound the least bit assuring would remain another mystery to her.

The young miko swiftly hurried to follow the others inside and couldn't help but marvel at the sight that greeted her. The entrance hall was huge and beyond breathtaking, the white marble floor was matching the champagne colored walls that were graced with a series of portraits and paintings and the large chandelier that was dangling from the ceiling illuminated the large hall together with the broad windows.

To Kagome it looked less like a museum and rather like a castle.

"Beautiful." Eri exclaimed in a whisper next to her, clearly just as impressed as Kagome was and the raven-haired girl nodded in agreement.

Beautiful indeed.

"Class, attention please!" Their teacher called as he clapped his hands to gain their attention. Kagome's eyes fell on him and instantly noticed that this time, a young woman was standing next to him.

She seemed to be a bit older than them, maybe in her early twenties, and had short black hair that reached her shoulders. Her dark amber eyes were fixed on the group of teens in front of her and she offered them an amiable smile that brightened up her eyes.

With the exception of her rather mesmerizing eyes, Saki seemed quite ordinary to her and for Kagome, ordinary was always safe.

"Good morning. My name is Hanazono Saki and I'm your Tour Guide for today." She curtly introduced herself and gave them a small bow that instantly left the guys of her class marvel at her manners.

Kagome fought the urge to sigh.

Men.

They didn't waste much time and after all introductions were done, they set off by entering the first broad corridor. It started off with old paintings and portraits that were hanging on the walls and practically loomed over them, similar to the ones that they have already seen hanging in the entrance hall. Saki stopped every now and then to explain some of the paintings histories and the boys in Kagome's class suddenly seemed _very_ interested in history upon meeting Saki.

They followed her like subdued dogs and Kagome couldn't help but snort at her own , she expected no less from her classmates and even though it was somewhat annoying to see them embarrassing themselves like this, Kagome had to admit that so far she really enjoyed the tour.

Still, no matter how hard she tried to focus on listening to Saki, she couldn't shake off the feeling of someone's eyes being on her.

After that incident earlier at the entrance Kagome hadn't felt anything with her reiki even after she had expanded it and scanned the entire area as she had done countless of times in the past already.

It should serve as an assurance to her, but it somehow only unsettled her further.

What if there really was something that was hiding its aura from her? It wouldn't be the first time and even though Yokai didn't exist in her time, she, a miko, did. So why shouldn't they as well?

Shaking her head at her own thoughts she followed the others once more when they walked through the door and entered a hall that was slightly less broad than the first one, but jut as stunning.

This time however, it wasn't the beautiful chandelier, the windows or the paintings that caught Kagome's eyes. This time, it was something entirely different, something that she would have least expected to be displayed in a museum.

She could have sworn that as soon as they stopped in front of the first pedestal and her eyes landed on the all too familiar artifact that rested inside of the glass cube that her heart made a painful leap in her chest.

Her eyes widened for the split of a second and she was painfully aware of the way her heart skipped a beat upon seeing _it_.

"Well, this here is one rather interesting artifact." Saki started off with a smile as she eyed the group in front of her. "Does anyone know what this could be?" She inquired as she looked around in the crowd before her eyes rested on Kagome, who was seemingly oblivious to her lingering gaze.

Kagome's eyes softened as she took in the small round beads that she would recognize anywhere in an instant even after all the years that have passed ever since she had put them on him and before she could stop herself, she spoke up.

"Beads of subjugation."

Her classmates looked at her in surprise, clearly not having expected Kagome to speak up and much less know what this was and upon noticing the sudden attention that she gained by answering the question, the miko swiftly averted her eyes from the rosary.

She mustered up a small smile even though she still felt somewhat shaken upon seeing the beads that she had used to subdue her friend with being displayed as an ancient artifact in a museum.

Kagome inwardly wondered how Inuyasha managed to take them off in the first place for them to be displayed in a museum. Whereas she knew that there was always the possibility of the spell loosing its power with her disappearance, she knew that it was highly unlikely nonetheless.

Also, how did the owner of the museum get them in the first place?

"Indeed." Saki suddenly confirmed as her lips curled upwards into a small smile. There was a spark of something in her eyes that Kagome just barely caught, but it disappeared before she was able to identify it. "Around five hundred years ago, they were used by a powerful miko to bind a strong half-demon. When activated by the use of a certain word, the beads glow and bring the wearer under total control, meaning that all the miko had to do in order to subdue him was to utter a single word."

There were a few sounds of surprise from her classmates and Eri, who was standing next to her, seemed awed as well.

"The Miko was able to subdue a hanyou?" She inquired loud enough for the others to hear as well, clearly impressed. "She must have been really strong."

She was oblivious to the way Kagome's eyes saddened upon hearing her words, a bittersweet smile gracing her face.

She had been anything but strong back then and she still was very much untrained regarding her miko powers even though she did learn a thing or two during her years in the feudal era. She had been pretty useless back in the days and barely managed to be of any help with the exception of locating the Sacred Jewel Shards.

As much as it would have hurt her to think like this about herself in the past, she had come to accept that fact not too many months after she had accidentally shatter the Shikon no Tama.

"Hanyou, Miko and Yokai don't exist, they're simply made up." One of her male classmates called from the back of the crowd, and Kagome suddenly felt the urge to snort.

She used to think the same. That was, until Mistress Centipede decided to drag her down the Bone eaters well and five hundred years into the past.

Yeah, such an experience could really change one's point of view and belief.

"I wouldn't be too sure of that. If humans exist, why shouldn't other beings exist as well? Never believe everything you see." Saki gently advised him as she run a hand through her dark short hair. Even though the others were seemingly oblivious to it, Kagome didn't miss the way her eyes suddenly softened and for a moment, Saki looked double as old as she was.

Kagome's eyes turned questioning as she frowned but before she was able to dwell on the matter, another one of her classmates spoke up.

"Did the Miko and the hanyou travel together?" Another girl, Yura if she remembered right, suddenly inquired and with every question that followed Kagome's heart felt heavier in her chest. Why was it that everyone suddenly seemed very interested in that particular story?

 _Of course they couldn't have possibly chosen one regarding the paintings._

Saki's smile turned broader and her eyes sparkled as she gave the girl a nod. "Oh yes, they did. Together with a wise Monk, a kindhearted Demonslayer and a small kistune the Tachi traveled through Japan in order to find the Sacred Jewel shards of the shattered Shikon no Tama." She told her and Kagome could tell that she had now gained even the last one's full attention.

Because let's be honest, who wasn't a sucker for a story involving demons, a Sacred Jewel and a Miko.

It still felt incredibly weird for her to hear her own story being told by someone else and the sadness that she felt upon being reminded was immense. It was as if someone had just reopened all of her old wounds that she had spent the past two years carefully stitching up. She knew that with the Jewel gone and the wish made, her friends were living a happy life but she couldn't help but miss them all terribly nonetheless.

"Did they succeed in finding them?" Another voice, this time male, questioned from her right and Saki's smile softened.

"They did." She revealed, a sigh following afterwards. "But legends say that the hardships that they had faced and the prices that they had to pay were very high. A strong Hanyou aimed to complete the Jewel for his own selfish desires and the Miko and her companions only barely managed to defeat them. You see, the Jewel grants one wish but in order for the wish to get fulfilled, it has to be selfless. Upon defeating the half-demon and completing the Jewel, the Shikon Miko took it on herself to cast the wish and as expected, the pureness of her heart and the selflessness of her wish were the ultimate factor for her wish to be granted."

Kagome could remember it all to well. That one fateful day was still haunting her to this very day and she would never forget it for the rest of her life. All the joy that she had felt upon defeating Naraku, all the uncertainty that flooded her senses when the others told her to make the wish when they were standing in the clearing and all the pain that she had felt upon waking up in the well house and realizing that the well didn't work anymore.

"What happened to the Miko and her companions?" This time it was Ayumi who asked from Kagome's left, curiosity clearly lacing her words as she tilted her head slightly to the side as she expectantly looked at Saki.

Another pang.

"Thanks to the Miko's selfless wish, her friends lived a long and happy life. The Monk and the Taijiya finally got married and had many children, the Hanyou found love not too many years later as well and the miko-" Saki paused for a moment and Kagome held her breath in anticipation.

She was beyond delighted to hear that Sango and Miroku had managed to get their Happily Ever After after everything that they have been through and to hear that Inuyasha had finally managed to find someone to be at peace with was quite a relief to her as well, even though she couldn't help the slight hurt that she had felt upon hearing it.

She knew that she and Inuyasha would never be anything more than friends even before they had completed the Jewel. Yes, they did love one another but not the way one would think.

He was her best friend, saving her from the bad guys and lending her a shoulder to cry on just like she was his, teaching him how to smile, how to rely on others an to make friends.

Her heart went out for the Hanyou that she loved dearly and her worries were eased upon hearing that he would also find someone to give his heart to after everything that had he was forced to go through because if anyone deserved it, it would be him.

"The Miko," Saki once more started as she looked Ayumi and Kagome felt her body tense. "She wasn't from their time. Once the Jewel was completed she was forced to return to her time where she continued to live her old life." She explained, and Kagome felt a sinking sensation in her stomach as she slumped her shoulders out of disappointment.

She should have known better than to hope for anything different. This was the way that things were supposed to go and no matter the circumstances she couldn't change it just because she wanted to. She was certain that fate had its reasons for closing the well and keeping her in her time, even if she didn't understand them.

Eri pouted, clearly disappointed upon hearing the story's end. She was known for being the biggest sucker for romance there was and Kagome knew that she didn't like the ending that she was being provided with.

Unfortunately, Kagome drew the shorter straw so Eri would have to live with it. It wasn't like she particularly liked her own ending either.

"Did the Miko return to the others?" Eri inquired with a disappointed frown as she crossed her arms above her chest. Kagome turned her head back towards Saki, almost afraid to do so but much to her surprise Saki's amber eyes shone with a knowing light in them that left Kagome wonder just what the young woman knew.

The pace of Kagome's heartbeat picked up and she was suddenly painfully aware of the way her heart rammed against her ribcage as she noticed the way Saki hesitated. There was the small part of her that still held onto the small spark of hope that refused to die even after all these years and sometimes, Kagome believed it to have stayed for a reason. Maybe it was supposed to stay, to keep her going and maybe someday keeping that spark of hope alive would be the answer to all of her problems.

"Not yet, but she will." Saki, although hesitantly revealed and Kagome's eyes widened out of plain shock. She couldn't believe what she was hearing, it was simply impossible.

The well didn't work, she had tried it many more times than she liked to admit so how could she possibly return to the past?

As if reading her thoughts, Saki continued. "The Shikon Miko has yet to face her biggest quest, even bigger than her first and when time allows, she shall return." The amber eyed woman told them, much to Eri's and the rest of the class confusion as well as delight.

"What do you mean by not yet?" Eri inquired, clearly confused but Saki merely waved a hand in order to brush it off.

"It's nothing, don't break your head over such a story. Now, shall we proceed and move on to the next artifact?" Saki inquired with a clap of her hands as her enthusiastic voice echoed through the hall, but Kagome only barely registered it.

She suddenly felt hot and cold all at once and her traitorous heart wouldn't stop to furiously beat beneath her chest. So there was still hope for her after all and her journey in the Feudal Era wasn't over yet. She knew that she shouldn't feel this way, she knew that she shouldn't look forward to returning home in order to try the well because it would most likely not work as it did all the times before and yet, she couldn't help the smile that brightened up her face.

 _So fate still had something in store for her after all._

The next two hours flew by in a blur and admittedly, Kagome didn't remember much of the rest of the tour for obvious reasons. She was lost in her own thoughts, barely noticing whenever they had continued to walk to another room and wondered what would expect her when she would get home.

"I hope that you have enjoyed this tour. I am sure that we'll see each other again!" Saki cheerily told the class before her eyes fell on Kagome and she couldn't help but feel as if the words were directed at her.

After they have bid their goodbyes and have each received a small souvenir in the form of a key chain they have made their way back to the train station where they have entered the train back home. Her two friends were chatting once more and tried to get Kagome to talk with them as well but as much as she tried, she didn't have the heart to fully participate in the conversation.

It was the unknown of what the future held for her that was beyond nerve-wracking and during the entire ride back home Kagome couldn't help but feel the dreading anticipation that filled her. She wondered if what Saki had told them was indeed true or if it was only a legend that held no meaning in it and would lead to another disappointment for her.

And even if it was true and she would be able to travel through time once more, was it really what she wanted, or more so desired?

Of course she wanted to be with her friends once more but in the end, they would sooner or later live their own lives. Miroku and Sango would get married if they weren't already, Inuyasha would find someone as well and she would be the odd one out once more.

She didn't want to be the third wheel anymore.

If she would stay here in her time she would be able to finish her degree, get a nice job and eventually find some ordinary guy that she could have a family with. It would be as easy as that.

And yet, she knew that it would never fully satisfy her.

There would always be something missing, a part that would always be absent regardless of which time she would stay in and until she would find that missing part of her, she wouldn't break her head over such things.

A year and a half ago she would have instantly jumped at the opportunity to go back and wouldn't have cared about anything but to see them again. But now at the age of nineteen Kagome found herself hesitating.

She looked at things in a different way now than she did all these years ago and whereas she would still like to go back now as well, she didn't desire to do so for the reasons she had once had.

As the Shikon Miko it had been her duty to gather the Sacred Jewel shards and to defeat Naraku so now that the Shikon no Tama and Naraku both were no longer, she had no reason to return with the exception of seeing her friends again.

If Saki spoke the truth and she would be able to pass through time once more, she knew that she would do so with a new purpose. If she was meant to live with her friends the well would have allowed her to remain at their side years ago, and if she was meant to stay in her time, the well wouldn't open once more and stay sealed.

Over the years she had matured and realized that she was nothing more but Fate's tool. She couldn't change it, nor could she avoid it and thus Kagome decided to simply give into it.

What happened, happened for a reason and what will be, will be. It was as easy as that.

There was no point in breaking her head over something like that. As long as she knew that her friends were healthy, alive and were living a happy life there was no reason for her to worry.

No matter how long it would take for the well to once more open, if it did open it would for a reason and when that time came, Kagome would be ready.

She would travel back in time for the sole purpose of fulfilling her duty as she had done before.

Kagome arrived at home just as the sun set and as soon as she reached the top of the shrine, the raven-haired girl exhaled deeply.

She got delayed on her way back home by Eri asking her to accompany her to the mall because she had seen a certain book that she just needed to get. Kagome, being the nice girl she was, couldn't possible refuse and accompanied her friend and lend her some company what resulted her to reach the shrine in the late afternoon hours.

Kagome slowly forced her feet to carry her towards the front steps of their home, pointedly ignoring the well house for as long as she could but in the end, her blue orbs couldn't help but stray towards it.

For a moment, she considered it.

It would be easy, she just needed to enter the well house and look if the well opened. If it didn't, it simply wasn't the right time and Kagome could live on as if this day never happened.

No biggie at all.

She knew that if she did so and found out that it worked, however, she would thoughtlessly jump in just like that and thus she decided against doing so just yet.

Kagome forced her eyes shut and continued to make her way to the Shrine right past the Well house and entered her home with a heavy heart. She really did need a nice warm shower and some sleep in order to process everything that she had just found out. If the well really did work it would also work tomorrow and even though her curiosity was slowly killing her, she forced herself to trust her gut feeling for once.

It had never failed her before during all these years and the mere fact that she now knew that it would someday open once more was reassurance enough for her.

There was no way around fate anyway.

Thus, the young miko entered her home and forced a smile on her face as she had done so many times before in order to not alarm her family.

"I'm home." She called as she took of her shoes and closed the doors behind her. Strangely enough, her yell was not answered and so Kagome made her way to the kitchen to check if her family was home in the first place.

Upon entering the kitchen, the young miko found it as empty as she had expected it to be. Out of habit, Kagome walked over to the kitchen counter to look if her mother had left her a note as she had always done when they left without her and indeed, a yellow post it was laying there.

Curiously, Kagome picked it up.

 _Welcome home honey._

 _Me and grandpa went to visit aunt Ai in Osaka and won't be back until tomorrow evening._

 _Souta is at Soccer practice and won't return until eight, there's some cash for the two of you on the fridge._

 _Stay safe!_

 _Love, mom_

As her eyes fell on the last words of her mom's note, Kagome couldn't contain the sigh that passed her lips. She mildly wondered why her mother didn't tell her that they would leave beforehand, but she assumed that it was one of their spontaneous trips that they liked to do every now and then.

Shrugging, the young girl decided that she should make the best out of it and once more grabbed her backpack before she made her way upstairs to her room.

Once she had reached it she quickly tossed her heavy bag on her bed and went over to her dresser to get a fresh set of clothes that she could change into after her shower.

She guessed that a pair of black sweatpants and a gray shirt would do and as soon as she had grabbed her clothes, Kagome went on and took a hot shower.

She didn't know how many minutes or even hours she had spent in there, simply enjoying the hot water caressing her skins and washing all her worries away as she reminisced about the past as she had done so many times before. She was a sucker for hot showers and whereas she liked to enjoy a nice bath every now and then as well, it always remembered her of her baths with Sango in the hot springs.

As soon as she was done, Kagome swiftly dressed into her warm clothes and went back to her room. She didn't bother to turn on the lights and instead slumped right onto her warm bed. She buried her face into the soft cushion and deeply inhaled the fresh strawberry scent as she closed her eyes. It's been a tiring day, kami knew just how tired she was, and she should probably get some well needed sleep after her rather disastrous three hours of sleep that she had managed to get during the last night.

Kagome forced her mind to clear from any distracting thoughts that may keep her awake and allowed her body to get lost in the warmth that her bed offered her.

It took her some minutes but in the end she managed to give into the lulling darkness and drift off into the lands of the dreams.

\- X -

It's been exactly four hours and twenty three minutes. Four Hours and twenty three minutes of a blissful deep slumber that Kagome found herself getting rather rudely ripped out of.

It started off as a cold gust of air that caressed her skin like a thin blanket of snow, causing her to shiver beneath her thick sheets and stir in her sleep. Kagome frowned in her sleep and unconsciously wrapped the blankets tighter around herself as a small whine of protest left her lips.

Once she had successfully created a cocoon of sort with the aid of the blankets, Kagome smiled out of content and was about to drift back to sleep when all of sudden an all too familiar shiver run down the length of her spine that she had grown familiar to over the past years.

It tugged at her reiki, begging for her attention as Kagome found herself once more freeze on her bed. It was impossible and probably the worst time possible but when Kagome reluctantly opened her sleepy eyes and the feeling didn't fade, she knew that she was not dreaming and that it was very much real.

Her heart was feeling heavy beneath her chest and she felt it pulse in a steady rhythm together with her reiki, resulting her to become more and more awake with every thump that rippled through her body.

After some moments of simply laying on her bed and trying to get rid of the last bits of sleep that filled her system, the realization of what exactly she was feeling reached her hazy mind and as soon as it did, her eyes shot open wide.

 _The well._

For the next moments she simply remained laying there on her bed and listened to the sound of her heart beat in unison with the pulsing of her reiki . Her gaze was glued to the ceiling and for the following minutes she contemplated on what would be the right thing to do.

She would recognize the power of the well anywhere at anytime and this was undoubtedly the same sensation that she had felt all the times that the magic had engulfed her body whenever she traveled through time.

What could only mean one thing.

The well had finally opened once more.

Of course, she knew that after what Saki had told her that it would only be a matter of time until the ell would once more open, but she didn't expect it to open the night after her discovery.

Kagome lifted her hands and covered her face with shaking hands and inhaled a shaking breath.

Was she even ready?

She didn't know what would expect her on the other side, how everything may have changed and what great evil she would have to face this time and yet, she knew that she would never allow herself to deny her aid to the people in need.

What would happen if the well wouldn't allow her to return? Was she ready to once more leave her life in the present behind in order to risk her life for the past's future?

Kagome already knew the answer to these questions.

She was ready ever since she fell down the well at the age of fifteen.

Another tug, this time stronger, and Kagome groaned.

 _Oh for kami's sake._

The miko kicked the blankets off of her legs and got off of her bed in a rush. She walked over to her dresser and opened the wooden doors in order to pull out a pair of plain black jeans to change into and decided to stay in her gray shirt.

As soon as she was done, Kagome grabbed her long gray coat and wrapped her red scarf around her throat to keep herself shielded from the cold that would most certainly expect her. She decided against taking her yellow backpack with her, knowing that it wouldn't be of any use of her in the past. Sure, she could take some food or a sleeping mat with her but in the end, she could just as well hunt her own food and sleep in Kaede's hut as she had done countless of times before.

It would only serve her as a hindrance.

Her heart was thumping in an unsteady rhythm beneath her chest and Kagome turned around to look at her room for one last time with determined blue eyes.

After all these years that have passed, Kagome knew that it was time to leave her old life behind for once and for all.

With newfound courage, Kagome shut the door of her room close and tiptoed over to her brothers room. She didn't have the heart to leave just like that and with Sota being the only one at home with the exception of herself, she would have to burden him with her goodbye.

She silently opened the door to his room and peered inside through a small slit to see if he was asleep and indeed, her eye soon found his still form sprawled on the mattress of his bed, mouth open wide while he was breathing steadily.

Kagome smiled softly at the sight and felt a pang of sadness. Just when would be the next time that she would see Sota again?

She swiftly entered the room and walked over to his bed to give him a light peck on his cheek and a soft whispered goodbye as she slipped a small note under his pillow before she exited his room and made her way to the well house.

Kagome swiftly put on her boots and softly clicked the front door shut in order to not alarm Sota before she gently sprinted towards the ancient well house.

It was now or never.

With every step that she was taking towards the well the stronger the pull on her aura got and just as she had reached it, the corner of her lips curled upwards into a reminiscent smile.

Oh how she had missed it.

The sound of her heartbeat echoing loudly in her ears, the soft caress of the magic that the bone eaters well emitted on her skin and the adrenaline that rushed through her veins upon knowing that the next day would be a mystery to her urging her to go forwards.

As soon as she had reached it, Kagome threw open the worn out wooden doors and inhaled a deep gust of the icy night air.

Her hard gaze fell on the well that was standing in the middle of it and Kagome forced herself to descend the steps that lead her towards the well. She felt as if she was in a trance and all of sudden, everything came back.

It was when she reached it and her hands reached out to hesitantly touch the cold and damp surface of the well's lid that she felt a strong pulse underneath the palm of her hand and her mind was flooded with pictures, memories of a time far away from her own.

Her grip on the lid tightened and Kagome shut her eyes close. She was once more needed for reasons unknown to her and she would be damned if she would back out because of her fear of the unknown.

She would travel back once more, and finally find out what destiny fate had planned for her.

With that thought in mind, Kagome's eyes flew open to reveal her dark blue orbs that were filled with sheer determination before she gazed down into the dark well just to be greeted by the sight of a starry night sky instead of the dark ground that she had seen for the past two years.

Her heart leaped in her chest and a smile etched on her lips.

 _Finally_.

And with that, Kagome jumped.

* * *

A/N:

Hey there! I have finally decided to post the first chapter of my Sesshomaru x Kagome Fan fiction and hope that you all enjoyed reading it.

If you did, I would appreciate if you would tell me by leaving a review.

All the love,

Sara


	2. Familiar Faces

The Shikon Miko's Diary

Arc 1

 _Ara Mitama_

 _Day 2: Familiar faces_

The ancient well swallowed Kagome whole as the familiar warm lights engulfed her body.

Her skin was tingling at the sensation, her heart was furiously pounding against her ribs and upon realizing that the well actually worked she couldn't help but smile out of relief.

She was actually going back.

Kagome allowed herself to relax and watched as the blue lights around her rippled like soft ocean waves. She always loved to travel through the Bone Eaters Well. It lent her a sense of comfort and also served as a save haven of sort, where she was able to sort out her feelings and thoughts.

Kagome watched how the bright blue color that swirled around her vision slowly faded into a dull gray before it turned dark and she felt how the ground beneath her feet materialized itself once more.

She heaved a sigh of relief as the last sparks of the Bone Eaters Well faded into nothingness and she was left standing on the bottom of the tall well on her own once more.

 _Well, so far so good._

Now, she just had to find a way to get out of the well.

Kagome slumped her shoulders. She _really_ should have thought this through.

For the split of a second she actually considered calling for Inuyasha but just as fast as the thought had appeared, she quickly dismissed it. He would have already smelled her by now and furthermore, she didn't know how much everything has changed in the feudal era ever since the well closed. Knowing her luck, she would most likely attract all kind of demons' attention and put herself in more danger than was necessary and that was something that she certainly didn't need.

She was talking out of experience after all.

"Oh to hell with it." Kagome muttered with a frown as she rubbed her hands and grabbed one of the vines in a death grip. She would not depend on others anymore, even if it meant that she would have to climb out of a well by her own.

With newfound determination, Kagome managed to pull herself up and successfully climbed her way out of the well as she had done all these years before. After some rather tiring minutes and a few slips and curses later she pulled herself over the lid of the well with a groan and landed on the snow covered grass with a dull thud.

 _Obstacle number one successfully overcome._ Kagome gave herself a mental pat on her shoulder.

She lifted her eyes and found herself stunned as all she could do was marvel at the beautiful sight that greeted her eyes. The white snow reflected the moonbeams that the majestic full moon that was hanging in the dark cloudless night sky emitted and illuminated the clearing.

It was one of the rare and beautiful sights that would forever be left imprinted in her mind.

After she had spent some moments admiring the beautiful sight, Kagome decided to leave and find the village that the group used to stay at shortly. She didn't know what kind of demons were lurking in the shadows and only waited for her to pass by and serve as their next meal and even though she knew that she could take on a demon on her own, she wouldn't stand a chance against several of them at once.

Kagome took off into the direction that she remembered the village to be located at and forced her way through the shin-high snow.

At first, Kagome enjoyed the peaceful silence that the night offered her. Her senses were on high alert in case of any approaching danger as she walked through the dark woods all on her own, unarmed.

After all these years living in the Feudal Era the darkness didn't scare her anymore, it was being on her own that unsettled her and even though she didn't sense anything unusual, she felt restless.

After an hour of walking through the freezing snow in the darkness however, Kagome felt the first alarm go off in her head.

She should have reached the village quite some time ago already and yet no matter how far she walked there was not even one hut in sight.

Kagome doubted that it has been destroyed during her absence since there was no clearing in the woods that may have been the result of it having been burned down or anything similar and that was what unsettled her the most.

There was nothing. No burn marks, no clearings, no village, nothing.

She continued to walk, knowing that it was no use to panic in the middle of nowhere all on her own.

After some more minutes of walking without her stumbling across anything close to a village, Kagome's ears suddenly picked up a soft sound that sounded eerily like a wail, causing her to halt in an instance.

The moment that she had stopped, the noise disappeared and Kagome narrowed her eyes out of wonder.

 _Am I turning insane yet?_

She decided that her lack of warmth was to blame for her senses to play tricks on her and continued to walk, although this time even more attentive than before just in case.

Indeed, not even minutes later did the noise reach her ears once more but only this time, it was louder than before

This time certain that her mind was not playing tricks on her, Kagome instantly walked into the direction that the sound came from and with every step she took, the louder the wail became.

Her heart skipped a beat and she fastened her pace out of concern.

What would a small child do out there in the midst of nowhere all on its own?

Kagome knew that it could have just as well been a trap that served to lure her, but she was not willing to risk an innocent child's life out of fear to get attacked.

It was when she almost reached the source of the noise that her eyes caught sight of a large red bundle huddled at the broad stem of one of the trees.

Her eyes narrowed and upon getting closer Kagome realized that it was actually a _person_ clad in a red haori that was leaning against the tree.

She inhaled sharply as she hurried to the tree, kneeling down next to the person as she ignored the coldness of the snow that cut through her skin like daggers.

The wail didn't cease and Kagome reached out a shaking hand to unveil the in snow covered persons face but as soon as held the fabric in her hand, she abruptly stopped.

Her eyes snapped to the material that she was holding.

She _knew_ this Haori.

It was the same soft fabric that she used to clutch tightly in her fists whenever he carried her on his back, the very same material of the robe that protected her whenever they got attacked.

It was impossible and yet, it was undeniably the same.

Kagome clutched the robe tightly in her hand and gently lifted it to unveil the persons face and as soon as she did, all color drained from her face. Her wide blue eyes fell onto the familiar young unconscious woman that was protectively holding her crying infant against her chest and even after all these years she would recognize her face everywhere. It haunted the majority of her dreams during the first weeks in the Feudal Era after Inuyasha's and her encounter.

Her eyes then slid downwards onto the small child that was still crying, its sun kissed skin wrapped in a thick blanket to shield him from the cold. It was not the silver hair that caught her eye, nor the golden eyes that she was certain were hidden beneath his eye lids. It were the small dog ears that were attached to the child's head that caused her heart to tighten.

"Impossible." She breathed as her stomach gave a painful twist and her eyes darted back to the unconscious and pale woman. "Izayoi-hime?"

Realization hit her with full force and for a moment Kagome believed the Kami to be laughing at her.

That was _definitely_ not the time that she expected to be sent to.

Kagome swiftly shifted Izayoi's unconscious and cold body into her arms so that she was able to support her weight. She then gently cradled the young Inuyasha against her chest and tried to shush him as she lifted Izayoi up into a standing position so that the young woman was leaning against her.

As it previously did with her, the Fire Rat Robe shielded them from the harsh cold as much as it could but since Kagome didn't know how long they had been staying in the cold before she found them, she knew that she needed to hurry.

She gently rocked the infant in her arms as she tried her best to keep a firm grip on him and hurried through the snow whilst supporting Izayoi's weight.

Kagome considered herself blessed that the young hime was such a light weight and that Inuyasha's crying stopped a few moments ago but it was still quite a challenge to walk through the snow like this.

She needed to find a place where the three of them could stay at during the night, preferably a village that would offer them shelter from the harsh coldness but she knew that it was easier said than done.

Her breathing grew rasher with every second that passed by, her feet became heavier with every step that she took and her entire body was aching all over.

That was certainly not going as planned.

She didn't plan on giving into the temptation of sleep that kept on trying to lull her into the soothing darkness, but her hope on finding a shelter for the night became fainter with every hour that passed.

Just when she believed all hope to have disappeared, a faint light that flickered in the distance caught her eye and caused her head to snap up.

She narrowed her eyes to have a better look at it and even though it was blurred and faint, it was there.

With newfound strength, Kagome forced her body forwards and the closer she got, the clearer her vision became. Just seconds later she was able to make out how the darkness slowly took shape until the sight of several huts greeted her exhausted eyes.

Mentally cheering, Kagome fastened her pace and found herself at the outskirt of a small village not too many moments later, physically exhausted yet mentally wide awake.

She exhaled the deep breath that she had unconsciously been holding as she entered the sleeping village with every intention of waking them up.

Torches lightened up the small muddy roads between the huts and whilst it didn't seem to be a small village, it didn't look too welcoming either.

It was her only chance to save them though and _their_ only chance to survive, so she most certainly didn't plan to let it go to waste.

"Anyone, please, I need your help!" Kagome called as she shifted Izayoi gently so that she would not slip out of her hold.

Upon hearing her call, Inuyasha once more began to cry in her arms, his wails cutting through the deafening silence that filled the village as Kagome tried to shush him.

Izayoi started to grow heavier, Inuyasha wouldn't stop crying and Kagome was certain that she would lose her mind very soon if no one would come for them.

"What is all this commotion about?" Came a voice from her far left and Kagome's head snapped up just in time to see how a woman in her mid thirties walked towards them.

Her long black hair was cascading down her back and was a stark contrast to the bright colors of the miko robe that she was wearing.

Kagome couldn't believe her luck and didn't know whether to thank the kami or to curse them for having put her in this situation in the first place.

However, before Kagome was able to speak up in order to explain, the young woman's eyes fell on Kagome's companions, causing them to widen out of surprise.

"What in heavens name?" Breathed the miko out of surprise as she swiftly hurried to Kagome side and took a hold of Izayoi so that Kagome could properly hold the small child in her arms, for what she was beyond grateful. "Follow me."

Kagome, beyond relieved gave her a grateful bow before she followed the miko into a small hut close to the village's border.

The warmth that greeted them as they entered engulfed Kagome like a warm blanket and the young miko closed her eyes out of bliss. Her freezing hands burned at the warmth that covered her skin and unconsciously tightened her hold on Inuyasha as she watched how the miko gently laid Izayoi on one of the mats in front of the bonfire.

"I can't thank you enough for helping us." Kagome started, the relief and gratefulness in her voice clearly audible. "I feared that we wouldn't find any shelter for the night after I found them abandoned in the snow. "

The black haired miko gently removed the in snow covered fire rats coat from Izayoi's body and covered her pale body with a thick blanket instead.

"There is no need to thank me, I am happy to help wherever I can." She assured Kagome, throwing her a small smile over her shoulder which Kagome instantly returned.

As soon as Izayoi was taken care of, the village's miko motioned for Kagome to take a seat opposite of her and in front of the bonfire.

Kagome instantly complied and sat down in front of it, scooting as close to the flames as she could without getting burned.

"You are dressed in rather strange clothing. You are not from here, are you?" She suddenly inquired and whereas Kagome was used to this question already, she couldn't help but notice the way that the young woman eyed her clothes.

Kagome maintained her polite smile nonetheless and gave her a small nod in return.

"No, I am not. I am from a village a few days travel away from here and was on my way back when I heard him crying and found them like this." She knew that she shouldn't lie, she hated to do so but then again she couldn't possibly tell her that she was coming from five hundred years in the future either.

The dark haired miko in return hummed, eyes narrowed as her gaze fell on the currently sleeping bundle in Kagome's arms.

"He's a half demon." She observed, a sad sigh passing her lips. "It is most likely that her village exiled them on the very same day that he has been born."

Kagome knew that this was the usual way that the villagers treated hanyou's and their families if they had ones but she knew that in this case, it was different.

Her eyes saddened as she looked down at the small baby in her arms that would one day grow and become a cherished friend of hers.

He was so tiny and innocent and Kagome knew all to well that he would be forced to face many hardships from this day on. She wanted to do nothing more than warn Izayoi, to protect them and change their tragic fate and yet, she knew that she couldn't even let one detail slip without altering the future that she knew.

It was heart breaking.

The miko noticed Kagome's saddened gaze and laid a hand on her shoulder.

"If you allow me, I'll hold him while you change into one of the robes that are placed in the wooden chest at your right." She gently offered, catching Kagome's surprised gaze with her own calm one.

Kagome felt as if she was just told that she passed college with flying colors and she bowed once more from where she was seated.

"Thank you for your generosity, uh-"

"Misa."

Kagome smiled brilliantly in return. "Thank you Misa-san. My name is Kagome."

Misa in return gave her a small smile and a nod as Kagome handed her the small child in order to get changed.

She made her way to the small wooden chest that Misa had told her about and changed into the all too familiar clothes whilst being careful not to drench them with her wet hair.

As soon as she was fully dressed and move to take Inuyasha once more she noticed the way that Misa's eyes were seemingly glued on his ears.

Her expression held a frown as she regarded the small hanyou with an unreadable gaze and Kagome could already tell what the elder Miko was thinking.

However much to her surprise, Misa handed him back without uttering as much as a single word and Kagome found herself quite relieved.

Kagome looked back down at the small hanyou in her arms before she moved to carefully lay him down next to his mother and also covered him with the blanket.

Her hands rested on the warm fabric as she regarded the two with heavy heart. She wanted to help them and knowing that she couldn't was eating her alive.

"You're a miko as well Kagome-sama."

It was not a question but a statement but Kagome froze nonetheless. Taken by surprise, Kagome slumped her shoulders before she let go of the blanket and moved to sit back down next to Misa once more.

"I am. Although poorly trained, I am afraid." She confessed. "Is it that obvious?" Kagome inquired, a sheepish smile playing on her lips as she watched how Misa in return chuckled.

She shook her head and offered Kagome a brief smile in return.

"Your reiki is simply overwhelming Kagome-san. Trained or not you carry a lot of power that even ordinary people could easily sense." Misa admitted as she threw a twig into the burning fire.

Kagome sighed in return as she savored the warmth that the fire emitted.

Her eyes flickered to the unconscious woman that was laying a few meters away from her. She was beautiful and looked every bit royalty that she was. Her long hair was pooling around her as the light of the flames highlighted her pale skin. She looked just like she remembered and it was then that it all sunk in.

It was Inuyasha that she was holding. It was his mother that was laying next to her, unconscious yet alive.

The well had obviously failed to bring her back to the Feudal Era and had instead sent her even further back into the past.

Kagome felt like punching someone.

"I am nothing but my powers tool." Kagome sadly whispered as she gazed down at the two sleeping figures. They looked so peaceful, blissfully unaware of all the pain and hurt that would expect them in the years coming. "Whereas it should be the other way around."

Silence filled the hut after her words and whereas Kagome didn't expect an answer, the weight that her words carried was clearly palpable.

"All of us are fate's tool. We exist for a reason and until we have found our purpose, we will be nothing but our powers slaves, Kagome-san." Misa suddenly said, voice grave as it broke through the silence and ripped Kagome out of her musings.

Kagome lifted her gaze from the fire to look at the elder miko next to her and for a moment, Misa seemed beyond her age. The way her hazel eyes hardened as she spoke made her seem double as old as she was and Kagome mildly wondered just what Misa's life had been like until then.

It's been a tiring night. She was beyond exhausted, her body was aching all over and her head was pounding painfully. Yet, she was wide awake. She was certain that the sun would rise shortly now since they had spent the majority of the night trying to find a shelter and even though she knew that she should have taken the opportunity to rest and gather strength for the next day, she simply couldn't.

They spent the next minutes in a comfortable silence, both of them lost in their own thoughts. The sound of the fire cackling filled the hut and Kagome leaned her chin on her raised knees.

So the well has sent her further back in time, as it seemed. She didn't know why, nor did she know just how in heavens name she could return to her own time, but she was certain that it was no accident.

Kagome never knew how the well worked. She simply assumed that it would either sent her back to her own present time or to the Feudal Era.

Now that she thought of it, she should have never underestimated its powers in the first place.

It was never guaranteed that it wouldn't send her further back or further into the future so in the end, it was her own fault.

So much for being careful.

A soft groan ripped her out of her musings and Kagome turned her head to the left, her gaze falling on Izayoi who slowly began to stir.

"She's waking up." Misa whispered as Kagome silently moved to kneel down next to the hime.

She laid her palm against Izayoi's forehead and felt it burn under her touch. Kagome's brows furrowed out of concern just as the young woman's eyes slowly fluttered open.

Kagome withdrew her hand and offered Izayoi a gentle smile, trying not to startle her.

Izayoi frowned, lips parted as she inhaled short and ragged breaths upon trying to get her clouded vision clear.

When it cleared and her eyes became focused however, they flew open wide and snapped to the raven haired young miko that was seated next to her.

She grabbed Kagome's petite hand in her own one, clutching it tightly as her chest heaved with every breath that she took.

"Inu-" Izayoi managed to rasp out, eyes filled with panic before she fell into a coughing fit.

Misa appeared from behind Kagome and put a glass filled with water against Izayoi's lips , urging her to drink.

The hime lifted her head to gulp down the water as Kagome gently rubbed the back of her hand in soothing circles.

After she emptied the glass, she laid her head back onto the floor and Kagome took the opportunity to speak up.

"He's right here, sound asleep." She whispered with a small smile as she motioned with her head to Izayoi's right where the small half-demon was laying, slumbering peacefully.

Izayoi followed Kagome's line of sight and let out a relieved breath as her eyes fell onto her newborn son. She lifted a shaking hand to gently caress his face, her strong hold on Kagome's hand considerably lessening as a tear escaped the corner of her dark eyes.

Kagome felt her heart break at the sight. Just why did fate have to be so cruel?

Izayoi's head then turned back to Kagome, tear filled dark orbs piercing through the dim lightning of the hut.

"Toga?"

The gentle whisper passed her lips, the pain and question that laced her voice clearly audible and Kagome didn't even have to ask in order to know who the name belonged to.

Her eyes gave it away.

Kagome wanted nothing more than to tell her that he was coming for her and Inuyasha, that he survived and won the fateful battle but she knew all too well that this wasn't the case.

Kagome's eyes softened before she lowered her head. No words were needed to be said for Izayoi to understand what happened to the father of her child and the keeper of her heart.

Izayoi pursed her lips tightly and turned her head so that she was facing the ceiling once more, silent tears running down her cheeks.

Misa sighed from where she was standing, knowing that this was the usual fate for any demon who fathered a hanyou. She didn't know what exactly happened or why he had died, but in the end the result was always the same.

Someone died.

Kagome silently offered Izayoi her support by remaining seated next to her as she wept, knowing that words of comfort would do very little to numb the pain of losing a loved one.

The three spent the next hour like in silence, the only sound that filled the hut being the occasional coughs of Izayoi.

Misa went out to gather some herbs for Izayoi's fever while Kagome remained by the himes side.

She stopped crying after half an hour and instead spent the rest of the time watching her son in silence as he slept.

Kagome had moved from her position next to Izayoi and tried to get her coat and the rest of her clothes to dry and glanced at her two companions every now and then out of the corner of her eyes to make sure that they were alright.

It wasn't until another hour passed that Kagome slowly began to grow concerned. Misa only went out to get some herbs for Izayoi's fever. She should have long returned by now and yet there was still no sign of her.

A few minutes later Kagome heard the door squeak and the young miko lifted her eyes to welcome the miko back but as soon as she lifted her head, she wished she didn't.

There in the middle of the doorway stood Misa with her eyes wide open and a deep hole in her stomach.

Kagome dropped the bowl that she has been holding as her own eyes widened and a surprised gasp passed her lips.

"Misa-san!" Kagome called as she jumped on her feet and hurried to catch the collapsing miko.

Kagome fell on her knees with Misa's limp body in her arms, her hands drenched in warm blood as she tried to stop it from pouring out of the wound.

"Come on, don't die on me." Kagome begged in a whisper as she desperately tried to stop the bleeding but no matter how hard she tried, it didn't seem to work.

It was when Kagome reached out to check for Misa's pulse and found none that she felt like someone just punched her in the gut and realized that there was no hope for her.

Kagome's eyes snapped to Izayoi and much to her surprise, the young mother returned her disbelieving one with a fearful one of her own.

"He's coming for me." Izayoi whispered, her panic filled eyes falling on Misa's limp body in Kagome's arms as she cradled Inuyasha closer to her chest.

Kagome felt he heartbeat pick up upon hearing her words. She didn't know who Izayoi was referring to but whoever it was must have been the one responsible for Misa's death.

Before she could ask who it was that she meant, a strong gust of wind passed her before she felt herself getting hurled against the closest wall.

A pained yelp passed her lips as her body collided against the wooden wall, all air leaving her lungs as she fell onto the ground.

Her senses were instantly screaming at her to move, her reiki pulsing as she felt the overwhelming demonic aura clash against her own.

It caused her entire body to tingle, the powers that filled her blood begging to get released as she moved to get on her knees.

It filled the entire air and was nearly suffocating her, screaming superior and authority.

Her eyes shot open as she realized that she had felt this youki once before already, and that there was only one being that she knew of that could possess a youki this strong.

Kagome moved onto her knees and lifted her head, heart furiously beating out of dreading anticipation as she realized just who it was that was after Izayoi.

 _Sesshomaru_.

His long silver hair was shining dangerously in the light that filled the hut, the sleeves of his haori moved upwards and revealed the markings that run along his arms and the low growl that broke through the silence caused a shiver to run down her spine.

Kagome knew that they were in deep trouble. Just how the hell was she supposed to defend them against _Sesshomaru_?

Inwardly groaning, her eyes then darted to Izayoi. She was slumped in the corner of the hut, her left temple bleeding as she held a crying Inuyasha tightly against her chest with shaking arms.

Sesshomaru narrowed his eyes at the sight and Kagome knew that if she wouldn't interfere soon, there was no chance of survival for them.

Kagome forced herself into a standing position, ignoring the way that her muscles protested and leaned against the wall for support.

"Pathetic." Sesshomaru growled as he flexed his claws. "To think that father died protecting a worthless ningen woman and a hanyou."

Izayoi in return remained silent, her head lowered out of sheer fear. She heard plenty of stories about her lovers firstborn and knew that if she would do as much as move he would not hesitate to kill them.

Sesshomaru's green poison leaked out of the tips of his claws, the glowing liquid glowing menacingly in the dim lightning as he took one step closer to Izayoi, golden eyes hard.

"Lift your head." He sharply commanded, voice cutting through the air like a knife. "Do not dishonor my father's sacrifice by refusing to face the consequences of your foolish actions, _ningen_."

Kagome held her breath and watched the hime with pleading eyes, hoping that she would do as Sesshomaru said and do something, anything other than to _defy_ his order but after several moments passed and nothing happened, Kagome wanted to face-palm herself.

Sesshomaru was not someone that liked to be left waiting.

She then made out the irritated twitch of his wrist out of the corner of her eye and instantly pushed herself off of the wall, knowing that this was her cue.

She knew that Sesshomaru could hear her every move and thus, she remained standing where she was and didn't even try to get too close in order to not alarm him.

"You speak of Izayoi-sama dishonoring your fathers sacrifice by refusing to face death and yet, isn't killing the one's that he gave his life for just as dishonoring, Sesshomaru-sama?"

She knew that it was a far shot and that he would probably have her head for even do as much as address him but it was the only way that she was able to come up with in order to save them.

Kagome was painfully aware of the fact that she wouldn't last a minute in a battle against the Daiyoukai and since Sesshomaru was a honorable demon regardless of how many times he tried to kill them in the past, she was certain that if there was a way to make him spare their lives, then it would be to let him taste some of his own medicine.

She saw him still after her words have reached his keen hearing and in the next, she felt all air leave her lungs as she found herself thrown against the wall with his clawed hand around her neck, keeping her in place.

Kagome bit her lip to refrain from crying out at the pain of getting thrown against the wall _again_ and really hoped that this wouldn't become a habit.

He was an arm length away from her, his stunning yet just as dangerous golden eyes boring through her very own soul as his lips curled downwards and revealed a sharp fang.

His presence was overwhelming and all of her instincts were telling her to fight, to get out of his grip and to survive , but Kagome forced her reiki to fade and allowed his youki to dominate it.

It was a way of signalizing him that she wouldn't try to defend herself and attempt to purify him and even though it was dangerous, it was their only chance. He could kill her within the blink of an eye if he wanted to, if not even faster, but she would not allow him to take their lives this easily. Kagome knew that she would have to outsmart him without hurting his ego at the same time but unfortunately, that was easier said than done.

Then again, her stubbornness had to be good for something.

"You dare to question this one's honor?" He inquired, his velvet voice ripping her out of her musings as the blood in her veins froze upon hearing the familiar voice.

 _How many years has it been since I have last seen him?_ Kagome thought, a pang of nostalgia shooting through her.

She felt his grip on her throat tighten and clenched her jaw. Then again, maybe it was better that she didn't encounter him more often than the the handful of times that she did.

Sesshomaru felt her tense under his grip and yet she showed no sign of fear for her life. Instead, she looked quite annoyed as she steadily held his gaze and looked him dead in the eye without doing as much as flinch.

Well, that was a first.

He had seen it all. Them falling onto their knees and begging for mercy, others trying to fight him until their last breath whereas some were simply too scared to move or speak at all.

He could instantly see the fire that was lighting up her dark blue eyes and felt her suppress her reiki, what was quite unusual for a miko when their life was threatened, especially by a demon.

She either tired of this life or was a plain fool.

"You are probably the most honorable youkai that walks on this earth, Sesshomaru-sama." She suddenly spoke, catching his attention once more. "Your father died in order for them to live. His sacrifice would go to waste if you were to kill them now."

Sesshomaru kept his gaze firmly locked on the miko, his blank expression showing the smallest hint of irritation upon hearing her words. He didn't know who she was or why the lives of his fathers lover and bastard son were of importance for her but she would learn that regardless of her relation to them, she should know her place and refrain from interfering.

"What would filth like you know about sacrifices?" He mumbled as he tilted his head slightly aside and channeled his poison to the tips of his fingers, watching her expression carefully.

He didn't expect her to answer and yet, she surprised him once more by giving him a sad smile. "I know more about sacrifices than you would think, Sesshomaru-sama." She whispered, wincing as she felt some of his poison leak and break the skin on her throat.

She was running out of time.

"Challenge him when he is older and can properly defend himself. This way, you'll be able to determine if your fathers sacrifice has been worth it." She once more tried, her hands that were loosely hanging at her side curling into tight fists as she felt his grip tightening.

Kagome was feeling lightheaded and was sure that if he would keep his hold on her for any longer, she would most certainly pass out due to the lack of air.

Sesshomaru watched her in silence, his expression not giving anything away as his golden eyes bore through her.

She suddenly felt as if he was able to see into her very soul. Everything around them stilled, the only sound that reached her ears being her heartbeat and her even breathing. His calculating eyes never left hers and after some more minutes of silence passed, he bared a fang as his lips curled downwards in aversion.

"Foolish." He murmured, voice laced with disgust as he abruptly let go of her and stepped back, causing Kagome to fall on the ground with a gasp.

Kagome inhaled as much air as her lungs allowed her to and rubbed her painfully sore throat with a shaking hand. She knew that she miraculously managed to get what she wanted but it was a close call nonetheless, one that she wouldn't like to repeat.

She lifted her narrowed eyes just to meet his icy gaze and he silently dared her to speak up once more just so that he would have another reason to slice off her head but upon seeing her turn her head away from him, he knew that she wouldn't do as much as utter a word anymore.

He didn't miss the annoyed twitch of her jaw as she turned her face away from him though.

Sesshomaru then turned back to Izayoi who was looking up at him through half lidded eyes and felt the blood in his veins boil in his veins.

He should kill them.

Their life for his father's, it seemed like the right thing to do and yet, whereas he had been beyond determined mere moments before he couldn't help but think of the miko's words.

They shouldn't affect him. He had a goal that he wanted to accomplish, _needed_ to accomplish in order to release all the anger that filled him after he heard of his fathers death and yet the small voice in his head that he tried to ignore most of the time tried to keep him from doing so.

They deserved nothing more than to die by his hands but when Sesshomaru looked at the small child in the arms of the shaken hime it took him all his will-power to refrain from killing them in an instance.

"You took something important away from me." He declared, eyes sharply narrowed. "This Sesshomaru will return the favor by doing the same. This Hanyou will pay for his existence when the right time has arrived."

He then turned around and moved to exit the small hut but just as he reached the entrance, a small voice reached his keen ears.

"Thank you, Sesshomaru-sama."

Kagome was beyond relieved that Sesshomaru didn't kill them and only found it right to thank him for having mercy. He just lost his father and was now forced to carry the burden of ruling the West all by his own, she could understand his anger and knew that it must have taken him a lot to not kill them.

Sesshomaru didn't stop nor did he give away any sign that would indicate that he heard her as he left the hut without any further delay.

"Thank goodness." Kagome sighed as she laid her palm against her forehead and forced herself to calm down. She did it. She managed to keep Sesshomaru from killing them and by doing so automatically managed to not alter the future.

 _However_ , Kagome thought as she opened her eyes and looked at Misa's unmoving body. _It came with a price._

Sesshomaru killed Misa. The poor woman died because of her hospitality and kindness and Kagome felt beyond guilty and saddened by it.

She would have to explain her death to the villagers somehow, what would either result them not believing and attacking her, or them believing her and allowing them to stay for some more days.

Kagome dearly hoped things to go the second way.

The young miko stood up and moved to Izayoi's side, every step that she was taking causing her head ache even more. "Hime-sama." She whispered as she knelt down next to her and laid a comforting hand on her shoulder, knowing what kind of a frightening experience it must have been to her.

Izayoi turned to look at Kagome with teary eyes and in the next moment she collapsed in Kagome's arms, crying her eyes out.

Kagome shushed her and rubbed soothing circles along her back as the woman in her arms held on her for dear life, face buried in her neck and hands holding on Kagome as if she would disappear if she would let go.

"I killed him." She whispered in between sobs, her entire body shaking as her voice broke at the end. "He died because of me."

Kagome never felt this helpless in her entire life. She held the princess tighter in her arms and felt her heart break piece by piece with every sob that rocked Izayoi's body.

"Don't blame yourself for his death." Kagome spoke, voice gentle as her fingers tightened in the material of her kimono. "He gave his life in order for you two to live. It wasn't your fault."

Izayoi merely continued to weep and all that Kagome could do was hold her and whisper words of comfort in hope of being able to calm her.

They were safe for now but somehow, Kagome couldn't help but feel like this wasn't her last encounter with the young Lord of the West.

She considered herself lucky that she survived this one but there was no guarantee that he wouldn't kill her the next time that she would stumble across him.

For some reason, she couldn't shake off the feeling that their paths would sooner or later cross once more and if this were to be the case, she definitely preferred it to be later rather than sooner.

Kagome sighed.

 _Just what have I gotten myself into?_


	3. Honor Bound

The Shikon Miko's Diary

Arc 1

 _Ara-Mitama_

 _Day 3: Honor-bound_

It's been two weeks ever since their encounter with Sesshomaru and during these two weeks Kagome barely managed to get a wink of sleep.

Shortly after Sesshomaru arrived she made sure to wake the villagers by playing her part of the frightened and devastated miko that just survived a youkai attack together with the princess that has just given birth. She of course told the villagers an altered version of what had actually happened and due to being a miko herself, it was easier to convince them that she wasn't lying and fortunately, they eventually came to trust her word.

They allowed them to stay for as long as they needed to, but only if Kagome would tend to their sick and old during their stay in the village. Kagome of course, knowing that this was their best chance of survival, instantly accepted and spent the past days tending to the villagers wounds and injuries as good as possible.

It was the least that she could do after her arrival costed Misa her very life. Izayoi was still weak and shaken after everything that happened and whereas Kagome would be the last person in this universe not to understand how the poor hime must have felt, she had quite a lot of things on her mind as well.

First of, she wasn't even supposed to be in this era. The well had sent her further back in time for some reason that she didn't understand and she feared that by her interference the day when Sesshomaru appeared, she may have changed something in the future. A part of her doubted that this was the case since Sesshomaru was obviously about to kill them, but there was no guarantee for it either.

Then again, maybe this was the reason why she was sent into this time in the first place. Maybe she was supposed to interfere and this way, change the future in a way that she didn't consider before.

Kagome groaned from where she was laying on her futon in front of the burning fire, her head already aching with all the theories that were running through her head.

It was driving her insane not to know what exactly she was supposed to do. Before, she knew that as the Shikon Miko it was her duty to collect the Shards of the Shikon Jewel that she shattered - twice, may she add.

Her exhausted blue eyes fell back on the two sleeping forms that were laying on the futon opposite of her beneath three thick blankets to keep them warm. A sigh escaped her lips as she felt her heart clench beneath her chest. It wasn't fair, none of this was. Izayoi just lost her lover, Inuyasha and Sesshomaru their father and now the latter had to rule the entire West on his own.

None of them deserved this, not even Sesshomaru.

Kagome remained lying there for some more moments before she clenched her fists, eyes burning and mind set. She would not lay around, wondering what she was supposed to do when she could just as well do something other than sitting around and questioning life.

She kicked the blankets off of her body and stood up before she grabbed her yellow backpack and packed her belongings as well as some food for her journey. It was still snowing but the snowstorms have become less and it was either risking something or spending the rest of her life in this hut. She shrugged her coat on and zipped her backpack shut before she slung it over her shoulder.

"You're leaving."

Kagome froze where she was standing and lowered her head, guilt causing her heart to clench as she turned around to face the owner of the voice with saddened eyes.

The hime was sitting on her futon and stared at Kagome with soft hazel eyes which reflected the flames that lightened up the hut. The statement was soft-spoken, nothing near judging and instead, sad.

"I am." Kagome admitted, her voice barely above a whisper as she suddenly felt the weight of her decision settle on her shoulders like a heave burden. She knew that she had to do this, there was no turning back once her mind was set on something and yet, she couldn't help but feel like she was leaving a part of her behind.

This may be the last time that she would see Izayoi and whereas they didn't meet under the best circumstances, she had grown on Kagome in a way that she couldn't explain.

She had finally met the mother of her golden-eyed best friend who went through so much pain in his life and she could proudly say that Izayoi was a beautiful, strong and loving mother that would raise Inuyasha to be the stubborn Hanyou that she loved and cared for.

Kagome walked over to Izayoi, careful not to wake the sleeping Inuyasha and knelt down in front of her with tear-filled eyes. It hurt to know that she would have to leave them to face all the pain, worry and obstacles that they would be forced to face on their own, but she already stayed for too long.

Reaching out for the hime, Kagome pulled the woman into her arms and held her as tight as she could. She smelled like a mixture of Cherry Blossoms and Lavender, fresh and sweet and Kagome made sure to remember the scent. It would be the only thing that she would be able to take with her on her journey, the memories.

"Thank you." She heard Izayoi whisper into her hair and Kagome refused to let the tears that threatened to leave her glassy blue eyes escape her. "Thank you for everything, I will forever be indebted to you."

Kagome shook her head and pulled back from the embrace, the sad smile on her lips highlighting her pained eyes. "Trust me, getting to know you is more than I could have ever asked for. Thank you for allowing me to know you, Izayoi-hime."

Confusion flickered in Izayoi's eyes for the split of a second but Kagome took it as her cue to leave. She leaned over to Izayoi's side and pressed her lips to Inuyasha's cheek before she once more moved to her feet. Turning around, Kagome moved to leave the hut before her heart would break any further but before she took the first step outside, she found herself hesitating.

"Don't worry about him." She started, not daring to look back at Izayoi. She was already delaying too much and yet, she knew that she had to leave her with _something_. "Despite of how things may seem, you have my word that in the future, he will find wonderful friends and the love he deserves."

And with that, she left and never once looked back.

It was in the middle of the night and since it would take some hours until sunrise, Kagome made sure to keep the bow and arrows that she received from Misa before Sesshomaru took her life close. In comparison to before she now had the advantage of knowing in which Era she was, so she would at least know better than to hope to stumble across another familiar face.

The Western lands must be in an uproar after their great Lord has fallen and it would take some time until Sesshomaru would manage to fully gain control over them again, meaning that she should be prepared to encounter a few demons that would try their luck with getting her as a midnight-snack.

Kagome snorted at her own thoughts.

 _Yeah, fat chance._

The snow was just as high as it has been four days ago when she first jumped out of the well. Fortunately for her it was not snowing anymore and she hoped that if she hurried, she would stumble across the well sooner or later. She needed to try the well in order to know if she had fulfilled her duty by saving Izayoi and Inuyasha.

Kagome continued to travel through the snow and tightened her hold on her coat, determined to reach her goal as fast as she could. It must have been around an hour of walking already and even though she was certain that this was the direction that she had previously come from, she still hoped that she wouldn't get lost.

After all, everything looked the same since it was covered in snow.

It was when she accidentally stepped on a twig that she could have sworn something behind her moved in the snow. Kagome halted, her senses tingling and on high alert as she tightened her hold on her bow.

She waited, but when nothing but silence greeted her, she continued onward.

Kagome was able to take two more steps until something in the snow a few meters away from her caught her sight and her eyes narrowed out of suspicion.

Blood.

Suddenly feeling painfully aware of everything around her, Kagome extended her senses and scanned the area for any threat with her reiki.

Indeed, not too many minutes later did she feel the faint brush of something against her reiki. It was swift and just as cold as the now that surrounded her. At first it was way too weak in order for her to recognize but the further she continued to walk, the more prominent it became.

She continued to walk into the direction for the next minutes in hope of stumbling across whatever caused this blood trail, but when the trees grew lesser and the spaces bigger, indicating that she was nearing a clearing she almost stumbled across her own feet at the sight that greeted her.

She inhaled sharply, extending her hand to steady herself on the nearby tree as her blue eyes fell on a familiar injured youkai in the snow.

"Sesshomaru-sama?" Kagome whispered, feeling her insides freeze as she carefully took another step towards the familiar demon. There he was, sitting in the snow and leaning with his back against the tree. Kagome was able to make out his blood-covered chest from where his haori has slightly slipped off his shoulder, revealing a large, still bleeding hole close to his stomach.

The lower part of his long and silver hair was dipped in his own blood and was sprawled around him, creating a stark contrast to the pure, white snow surrounding him.

For the split of a second, Kagome was torn.

She didn't know whether she was supposed to interfere and heal him or to just let him be and go back to the well. If she did interfere without taking the consequences into consideration the future may be altered but on the other hand, she didn't know that for sure.

Maybe she was supposed to find and heal him, just like she was seemingly supposed to save Izayoi and Inuyasha from Sesshomaru

It was a fifty-fifty chance, an all too familiar dilemma that Kagome found herself in during the past years as well. One wrong move, one wrong decision and she may change the future in a way that would put it into chaos.

She once more looked at Sesshomaru's injured body and clenched her fists at her side, frowning at her trail of thoughts. One would think that after all these years that she had spent in the past she would have stopped worrying about what may happen and whereas she did need to consider the possible consequences of her actions, Kagome knew that so far, she never regretted anything she did and fully trusted her instincts.

The very same instincts that were currently screaming at her to finally go and save Sesshomaru.

Having made up her mind, Kagome carefully walked towards Sesshomaru, trying not to make too much sound. She didn't know whether he was still conscious or not and if he was and she would startle him, she was certain that she would be unable to survive the next five minutes in his presence.

While she was walking towards him, Kagome made sure to lower her reiki so that it wouldn't clash against his own, weakened yoki.

When she was standing in front of him, Kagome gently placed her backpack on the ground a couple of meters behind her and knelt down in front of Sesshomaru so that she could take a close look at his injuries. The miko then gently reached out to move his Haori to the side and winced at the rather bloody sight that reached her.

Up close, his injury looked even worse then it did before and Kagome pursed her lips into a thin line as her eyes scanned it.

Her training with Kaede and years of treating her teammates taught her a lot about how both a youkai and a mortal injury needed to get treated and judging by the extend of this injury, not even a youkai as strong and powerful as Sesshomaru would be able to heal his body in the state it was currently in.

It was only a matter of time until both the injury and the cold would properly get to him and eventually kill him, that was, without Kagome's help of course.

If Kagome would properly nurse him and stop the bleeding his chances of survival would be considerably higher, especially since his body would be able to heal himself after Kagome's additional help.

The Miko removed her hand from his haori and moved to place it on his cheek in order to check his body temperature but just as her fingers brushed against his icy skin, she suddenly felt a large hand wrap itself around her petite wrist, tightly holding it and keeping Kagome from properly touching his face.

Kagome sharply inhaled, her wide blue eyes snapping up to clash with a pair of narrowed amber ones.

 _Oh crap._

"You." Sesshomaru growled lowly, clearly not too pleased by Kagome's company as his hold on her wrist tightened up to the point where Kagome believed it to break under his strength.

Kagome attempted to remove her hand, tugging at it in hope of Sesshomaru getting the clue and releasing it but it seemingly had the opposite effect for he only pulled her closer.

Kagome found herself getting tugged forwards and used her free hand to steady herself by placing it on Sesshomaru's broad chest.

She suddenly found herself closer to the Daiyoukai than she would have liked, her face mere inches away from his and whereas Kagome felt like this scene could have easily been out of one of the romantic movies she had watched back home when the male lead would tug the female lead closer so that they could share a passionate kiss, Kagome knew that her current predicament was anything but romantic nor movie-like.

The only thing she probably shared with the female lead would be the way her heart furiously slammed against her rib cage, though not out of excitement but rather out of fear.

"You dare to approach this Sesshomaru, Miko?" Sesshomaru hissed, voice rough as if he hadn't used it in a while as it send a shiver down Kagome's spine.

Panicking would be of very little use, she would need to stay calm and assure Sesshomaru that she didn't intend to hurt or even worse, purify him while he was in his most vulnerable state.

"You are hurt." Kagome returned, her voice just as low as his yet steady. "You need to get your injuries treated in order to make it through the night, Sesshomaru-sama."

All Kagome wanted was for him to see reason and whereas she knew that Sesshomaru was anything but stupid and would know that she was right, he was just as arrogant as he was smart.

Sesshomaru took in Kagome's expression and the way her eyes glistened with a mixture of concern and determination. Her petite wrist was still locked in his grasp and Sesshomaru didn't plan to release his hold on it before he was certain that this Miko would not attempt to do something as foolish as to touch him once more.

She was right though, Sesshomaru knew it just as well but that didn't mean that he would allow her to heal him nonetheless. He was barely conscious and tried to stall falling unconscious for as long as he could so that he could gather some strength and heal himself, but it seemed like his body simply wouldn't listen to him.

Sesshomaru received his injuries during a battle which he ultimately lost and even though he wasn't too pleased about it either, he would prefer an honorable death over dying by a Miko's foolish attempt of saving his life, in vain.

Sesshomaru's vision blurred once more and he struggled to keep it clear, eyes not moving from Kagome's. He didn't have much time left, and he refused to die in a Miko's presence.

"Don't be fooled by this Sesshomaru's state, Miko." He warned, eyes bleeding the faintest bit of red as he bared a glistening fang. "If you cherish your life, leave this instance before you will taste death by this one's hands."

For the split of a second, Kagome felt herself freeze upon seeing the red that crept into Sesshomaru's golden orbs. She had seen Inuyasha transform a handful of times before already and even though it was a scary sight, nothing would ever be able to top the sight of Sesshomaru turning into his full demon form.

She had seen it once before already, back then when Inuyasha and him fought when she had just arrived in the Feudal Era and to say that the mere sight of it engraved itself in her mind for the following years would be an understatement.

Then again, she couldn't just go and leave him to die either. It would go against everything she stood and fought for and if she were to actually leave Kagome knew that she wouldn't forgive herself for it.

Her eyes narrowed.

 _Stubborn dog._ Kagome mentally huffed. _Is he really that eager to die?_

"I won't leave." Kagome declared, looking him straight in the eye as she did so. She knew that she was risking a lot and that Sesshomaru could still easily kill her in his current state, but she wouldn't back down without a fight. She wouldn't leave him to die in the middle of nowhere. He was the Lord of the West and had the Western Lands to rule, how could he even think of dying?

Sesshomaru's eyes narrowed into dangerous slits as his amber eyes seemingly darkened but before he was able to do or say anything, Kagome elaborated.

"I won't leave." Kagome once more said as she removed her hand from his chest and placed it over his large one that was still gripping her wrist, eyes burning. "You, Sesshomaru-sama, are needed to rule the Western Lands now that your father has passed and I refuse to let you die before you fulfilled your duties as the Lord of the West. I _will_ heal you and you _will_ claim your position as Inu no Taisho's successor, whether you like it or not."

Sesshomaru found himself mildly surprised by the Miko's words, though he didn't show it and skillfully concealed it behind his usual blank facade. She seemingly didn't plan on leaving, especially not before she had treated him and didn't fear the possible consequences of confronting him.

He still remembered their first encounter where he had received a first taste of her stubbornness and will to live. For some reason, she didn't seem to fear him the way everyone else did. It seemed like she was very well aware of the power he held and respected him not because of his powers, but for reasons beyond his knowledge.

She was the first person, be it human, miko or demon to act this way around him, like she knew exactly what was going on in his head, and that was something that Sesshomaru didn't appreciate one bit.

It was quite the opposite. It caused him to want her prove wrong, to prove that he was every bit the icy, ruthless son of his father that the legends were about.

That he found himself in his current predicament was due to an unforeseen assault by his fathers former allies that tried to make use of the Inu no Taisho's death and kill his heir so that they could take over the Western Lands. With Sesshomaru's death, they would have one less obstacle in obtaining the Western Lands and whereas it would take some time for them to fully take over the Lands, it wasn't impossible with Sesshomaru out of the way.

However, this Miko proved to be his chance of preventing the Western lands to fall into the wrong hands. She was his chance of getting revenge and his Lands back under control, all he needed to do was to let her treat him and to put his suspicions aside.

Sesshomaru kept his eyes locked with hers and watched the way the snowflakes slid down her rosy cheeks that were flushed due to the cold.

There was something about her that make Sesshomaru believe that she was hiding something, a hidden agenda or plan that for some reason involved himself. He didn't know what it was, but if it was anything that may pose a threat to him, her reiki would have already given it away.

In the end, Sesshomaru knew that he couldn't die and leave his lands to someone else to rule. They were his responsibility and in order to fulfill his fathers legacy, he needed to survive.

Even if it meant that he would allow the Miko do treat him.

Having finally settled his mind, Sesshomaru ever so slowly released his hold on her wrist before he dropped it, the suspicion in his eye never fading. "One wrong move, and this Sesshomaru will make sure that this will be the last living moments on earth, Miko."

Kagome's eyes softened as she felt his grip on her wrist loosen until he fully released it. He didn't need to vocally reveal his decision, for Kagome knew well enough that this was as close to a yes as she would probably get and the young Miko felt a heavy burden fall off her chest.

Now it was up to her to help him recover so that he could become the Lord of the West that she remembered him to be.

It would probably take some time, but she had no choice.

"Well then, let's start."

* * *

Kagome spent the remainder of the day patching Sesshomaru up and sometime during the first quarter, Sesshomaru eventually fell unconscious. He had turned his head to stare into the trees, refusing to acknowledge the Miko's presence with the exception of the occasional growls that escape him whenever she dug the needle too deep into his flesh or applied too much pressure on his wound. It was not too pleasant to treat the stubborn Lord of the West whilst trying not to get herself killed for making a small mistake every here and then. After he was out cold, however, Kagome was able to properly focus on the task at hand without having to worry about getting growled at once more.

The silence was deafening and even though Kagome tried her best to stay focused, she had to refrain from glancing up at the Lord's face every once in a while to ensure herself that it was really him- the very same Sesshomaru that she had encountered in the past.

Well, her past, what was technically his future, but she didn't want to dwell to much on this rather confusing past-presence thing.

It was surreal and even slightly frightening if she were to be honest. To be this close to Sesshomaru, the very same one that killed Misa mere weeks ago and tried to kill her in the future as well, was anything but comfortable.

She wanted to save him, yes, and she would have regretted to leave him to die, but that didn't mean that she felt good by doing so.

Sesshomaru was needed as both Inuyasha's brother and Lord of the West now and in the future, but Kagome hoped that whatever the reason for her appearance in this time was didn't result her and Sesshomaru to cross paths more often.

She didn't believe that it would benefit neither her own or Sesshomaru's lives if it were the case, so she hoped that it wouldn't be the case for both her own and his sake.

Kagome finished when the sun set and wiped her forehead clean of the water that rolled down her bangs and covered her skin.

It was cold and Kagome had been siting in the snow and healing Sesshomaru for hours straight without a break, and that was slowly taking a toll on her body. She was sure that if she wouldn't start a fire now and get some sleep that she would most likely pass out from the cold every minute now, so the Miko left to gather some fire-wood.

She had been contemplating whether she should stay with Sesshomaru for the night or to simply leave and seek out the well before he would wake up, but in the end she figured that in her current exhausted state it would do no good to look for the well.

She needed to sleep and recharge her energy so that she could spent the following day looking for the well whilst being able to properly defend herself in case something were to happen.

Kagome sighed as she wrapped her coat tighter around herself and continued to walk around the clearing to look for some twigs that she could use to start a fire with.

She didn't even want to think about what would have happened if she hadn't traveled 500 years into the past back then when she was only fifteen and instead traveled to this time and encountered Sesshomaru without knowing him beforehand.

A dry smile made its way on Kagome's lips as she picked up a rather large branch. She would have probably gotten herself killed within the first ten seconds, that she was sure of.

Kagome continued to gather some wood before she turned back around, intending to return to the clearing and start a fire when she came to an abrupt halt.

The warning bells in her head went off and Kagome felt the blood in her veins freeze. She had left her bow and arrows back with Sesshomaru and in her current state, she would barely be able to defend herself, making her an easy target.

 _Yeah Kagome, way to go._ She mentally chided herself as she scanned her surroundings. Due to the darkness she was unable to make anything out but the mere fact that her skin was covered in goosebumps was enough to confirm her suspicions of someone being there.

Kagome slowly took a step forwards, eyes never leaving the darkness that surrounded her but when a twig somewhere behind her broke, she didn't waste any time and darted off into the opposite direction, away from whoever was following her and away from the camp, where her bow and arrows were located at.

She couldn't risk leading them to Sesshomaru and could only hope that whoever it was that followed her was weak enough for her to purify without her arrows.

Kagome run as fast as she could, years of living in the feudal era having considerable increased her stamina as she darted through the trees, the thumping sound in the snow behind her getting closer and louder the further the run.

Kagome inwardly cursed, regretting to have left the camp without her arrows as she dared to glance over her shoulder just in time to come face to face with two panther youkai in their animal form.

Her blue eyes widened for the split of a second as she caught sight of the left one taking a leap and Kagome threw her body to the right, the demon just barely missing her as it landed a few meters to her left.

Kagome continued to run, hoping to outrun them as the trees became lesser and something in the far caught her sight. The closer she got, the more visible it became and upon realizing just what it was that caught her eye, Kagome felt like crying out of joy.

The well.

Now, she only had to hope that it worked and would succeed in getting her back to her own time for if it would fail, Kagome would be stuck at the bottom of the well with a couple of broken bones and that was something she could gladly live without.

When she finally entered the clearing, Kagome charged straight for the well but the panther youkai seemingly realized what she was trying to do and jumped to block her path, causing Kagome to come to an abrupt halt.

The young miko was breathing heavily as she went into her fighting stance, dark eyes fixed on the youkai that now started to circle her as if she was their prey, what was undoubtedly the case.

The first one charged and jumped at her, almost managing to bite her head off her body with its sharp fangs as Kagome once more dodged it by jumping to the right, landing on her knees in the snow as she looked up just in time to catch the second one jump at her, knocking her flat on her back.

Kagome grunted as she felt the air leave her lungs from the force of the panthers attack, who was currently pinning her down as it growled, it's face dangerously close to her own.

Kagome tried to wriggle free, in vain and she knew that if she wanted to survive, she needed to do something.

So, for the first time in years, she closed her eyes and channeled her powers into her hands just as she had done years ago. The familiar tingling sensation almost instantly cursed through her veins as the pink light engulfed her entire body as it had done all these years ago in the past.

It took Kagome all of her remaining strength to call her powers forth and even though she felt dizzy, the adrenaline and excitement that cursed through her veins upon activating her powers after all this time was enough to keep her conscious.

She extended her palms and harshly placed them against the panthers chest, closing her eyes as she allowed her powers to do their job.

As soon as her palms came in contact with the panther demon and she channeled her powers into it, she heard the youkai above her wail loudly out of pain before it jumped off of her, landing some meters in the distance.

By the time it moved off of her Kagome was breathing heavily and when she was about to sit up, she suddenly felt herself flying several meters backwards. A startled yelp escaped her lips as her back harshly collided with a tree, her body sliding down its trunk as she collapsed at its base.

Kagome held her stomach in pain as she felt a warm liquid soak her hand through the fabric of her coat. It seemed like the Panther youkai used its claws and managed to break the skin of her belly, drawing blood in the process as Kagome tried to move herself back on her feet.

Her vision was slightly blurred as she moved to stand up, one hand holding her stomach while the other was glowing brightly. Kagome narrowed her eyes as she watched the Youkai-Duo simultaneously charge at her, one from the left and one from the right. She remained standing in place, waiting for the right moment to attack and when they were close enough, Kagome jumped up into the air, placed her free, glowing hand on one of their backs before she threw her body out of harms way and landed several meters to their right.

The panther that she managed to touch was wailing out of pain just as the other one had done moments before and whereas Kagome didn't manage to fully purify them due to her lack of power, it was still enough to keep them at bay until she could reach the well.

Kagome tried to get her breathing in control, wincing at the sudden rush of pain that overcame her from her most recent stomach-injury as she forced her body towards the well in hope of reaching it before the panthers would reach her.

She was getting closer and could practically feel the well calling out to her, her reiki pulsing at the familiar sensation but just as she was about to touch it's lip, she felt one of the panthers catch her coat with it's fangs and pull her backwards, causing Kagome to fall onto the ground with a pained yelp.

Kagome turned onto her back, looking at the youkai above her with wide eyes as she heard it's lethal growl and just as the youkai moved to dug its fangs into Kagome's neck and the young Miko moved to shield herself with her arms, she suddenly felt the weight of the panther youkai disappearing within a heartbeat.

Kagome removed her arms from her face, confused as well as surprised at the sudden disappearance of the youkai and couldn't fight the gasp that passed her lips as she was greeted by the sight of a familiar Daiyoukai protectively standing in front of her, his back facing her as he growled dangerously low in his throat.

"Sesshomaru-sama?" Kagome asked, surprise lacing her words as a wave of relief washed over her. She didn't expect him to come, nor for him to be able to move in the first place but Sesshomaru seemingly was not one to underestimate.

The Western Lord didn't acknowledge her presence and merely kept his golden eyes focused on the panther duo in front of him, eyes narrowed as a menacing growl sounded in the back of his throat.

It was a warning, a promise that death would befall them if they dared to take a step closer and even though Sesshomaru wasn't too fond of the idea of getting involved in a fight in his condition, he had very little choice if they wouldn't retreat.

He was honor-bound to the Miko for she saved his life and therefore, he was obliged to save hers as well. Though he personally couldn't have cared less whether the miko died or not, but that was beyond the point.

The panthers merely returned Sesshomaru's growl, eyeing him with malice as they considered their chances against the Western Lord. Sesshomaru was someone who would be able to kill them even in his current state and they knew it just as well. However, they couldn't simply let the young woman escape, especially after what she had done to them and thus, the panthers went into their fighting stance, even if it meant that they would have to fight the Western Lord himself in order to get through to her.

Sesshomaru, instantly catching on to what was going on, moved his head to glance at the young Miko behind her with narrowed eyes.

"Leave, this Sesshomaru will take care of them." Sesshomaru told her before he as well shifted his weight onto his left feet and lifted a clawed hand, poison leaking out of its tips as he locked eyes with his opponents.

"What?" Kagome asked, hoping that her ears deceived her as she moved to stand on her feet. She shot Sesshomaru's back a concerned look as she held her injured stomach, taking a step back. "I can't leave you alone, you're still injured!"

Sesshomaru growled once more, the sound causing Kagome to shut up in an instant. He was clearly not in the mood to argue with her, especially not given the current circumstances and Sesshomaru didn't bother to hide it either."You will do as this one says, Miko. Leave."

Kagome didn't want to, she really didn't want to leave him fighting them off on his own while she would run away like a coward but she knew that this was her only chance of returning.

The well was clearly calling her, urging her to leave the Lord's side and to return to her own time but somehow, it felt awfully wrong to leave Sesshomaru in his current state. She needed to ensure that he would survive so that he would still exist in the past that she knew, that he wouldn't get himself killed only because she couldn't properly defend herself.

Kagome closed her eyes and turned her head to the right, lips pursed as she reluctantly gave him a curt nod that she knew he wouldn't see. "Fine." She eventually yielded, and with one last glance at his back turned to make her way towards the well.

As soon as she moved, the panther youkai charged and Sesshomaru moved into action. Kagome forced herself to keep her eyes on the well and to not turn around as the sound of the battle reached her ears, the guilt heavy weighting her heart down as she sprinted towards it.

As soon as she reached it, Kagome tightly held the wells worn rim before she sat down onto it and turned her head to glance over her shoulder. Sesshomaru was fighting both of them at once, mostly dodging their attacks in hope of finding the right moment to strike and take them out once and for all without injuring himself even further.

His expression was blank and if it weren't for his bandaged torso, Kagome would have never guessed that he had been lethally injured mere hours ago. She couldn't help but hesitate despite of the wells powers yanking at her reiki, urging her to finally jump back to safety. Kagome wondered if it was right to leave him just like that, not knowing whether she would see him once again but when his eyes caught hers from where he was fighting the youkai and they narrowed into dangerous slits upon still seeing her there, she knew that he was probably better off without her.

Kagome turned her head to look down into the wells depth and closed her eyes, taking a deep breath as she slowly loosened her hold on the wells rim and jumped right into it with a heavy heart.

The familiar lights surrounded her as the well swallowed Kagome's body whole, the soothing sensation of the magic calming her nerves as she traveled back to her own time, leaving the Lord of the West behind.

* * *

As soon as Kagome's feet touched the ground of the familiar well's ground, the Miko leaned her body against its wall and laid a hand over her pounding heart. Well if that wasn't a close call, then she didn't know either.

As soon as she calmed herself down, Kagome made her way out of the well by climbing up the familiar worn ladder before she pulled herself over its rim. She winced as the wood came into contact with her still bleeding injury and she moved her hand to cover it, hoping that it wouldn't get any worse than it already was before she moved to stand back on her feet.

So she was home once again, it seemed.

Kagome couldn't help but feel like her return was bittersweet. Now that she had finally managed to travel back in time, she didn't get to see her friends and instead, was faced with a new task that resulted with her nearly dying. A small part of her had hoped that she would get to see her friends faces once more, to at least be able to properly say goodbye to them or to be able to spent some more time with them, but apparently the well had other things in mind.

Maybe she really was supposed to stay in her own time an didn't belong to the one their friends lived in. Maybe she never fully completed her mission and maybe, just maybe the Tale of the Shikon Miko wasn't over yet.

The mere fact that the well opened meant that it still worked and the mere knowledge of that was enough for Kagome to believe that whenever the well would allow her to travel through time again, and however far it would send Kagome back, the well had its reasons.

Reasons that Kagome knew nothing of.

Kagome decided to leave the well house before she would fall too deep into her thoughts. The miko left the wooden house and walked over to the shrine, both mentally and physically exhausted and just as she removed her shoes and wanted to knock on the door, Sota yanked the door open.

Her little brother seemingly wanted to leave the Shrine just as she was about to enter it and when he came face to face with his big sister, his eyes widened.

"Kagome." He breathed, not trusting his eyes and as his sister offered him a weak smile, he didn't waste a second before he pulled her into a bone-crushing hug.

Kagome would have thought this gesture to be incredibly sweet but due to the wave of pain that overcame her as Sota pulled her against him, she couldn't help but wince.

"Sota." Kagome gasped, shutting her eyes close. "My stomach."

Sota, instantly realizing what she was getting at released her within the split of a second and looked down at his sisters belly just for his eyes to widen at the sight that greeted him.

"How the hell did that happen?" Sota asked as his head snapped upwards to look at Kagome, who in return meekly shrugged as she felt herself getting dragged into the shrine by her little brother.

Sota lead her to the couch in the living room and went to the Kitchen to retrieve the first-aid kid while Kagome tried to remove her wet and in blood drenched coat. It took her some time until she managed to remove it but she eventually succeeded in doing so.

She placed it onto the ground next to the couch just as Sota entered the living-room, holding the first aid kit before he placed it onto the couch next to Kagome. His expression was stern, making him seem much more mature as the sixteen year old boy carefully eyed her blood-stained miko garbs.

"It's nothing big Sota, I've had worse." Kagome assured him as her little brother lifted the top of her Miko garb, eyes instantly catching sight of the ugly gash that was spread over her stomach.

"Ouch, looks like it hurts." Sota told her, grabbing the disinfection spray and compresses. "Looks like Inuyasha wasn't too happy to see you."

Kagome knew that Sota was only joking but somehow, she couldn't bring herself to muster a smile. Sota instantly noticed his sisters unusual quietness and looked up at her with a confused frown. "Don't tell me he really wasn't happy to see you." Sota said, knowing just as well as his sister that even if hundred of years were to pass, Inuyasha would still be happy to see his best friend.

"No." Kagome quickly assured him, a sigh passing her lips as she fixed her eyes on the wall behind Sota with a solemn look. "The well didn't send me to Inuyasha's time, it sent me back to the day Inuyasha's father died."

Sota's hand stilled and his head snapped up to look at Kagome in surprise. "What?"

Kagome offered him a small smile, having expected his rather surprised reaction as she merely shrugged. "Yeah, so as you can imagine it's been a rough two weeks." She told him, and Sota shot his sister a sympathetic look.

"Oh man, that must have sucked, especially since you probably didn't know anyone from there too." He said, and Kagome hummed lightly in return.

"Well, I did meet Inuyasha as a baby, his mother and Sesshomaru, though my meeting with the latter wasn't all too pleasant." She revealed, and Sota looked up at his sister in surprise.

"You met Inuyasha's mother and him as a child?" He repeated, throwing the cotton that he held away before he moved to get the bandages.

Kagome nodded as she thought back to the frightened and devastated hime, her heart giving a painful beat. "Yeah, though I only met them by chance. Inuyasha and her were almost freezing to death in a forest close to the well and I took them to one of the villages nearby." She explained, and Sota hummed in return, indicating that he was still listening.

"Wasn't it weird, you know, to see your best friend as a baby?" Sota asked, and Kagome chuckled lightly.

"It was." She admitted, the picture of the newborn in Izayoi's arms flashing in front of her eyes. "Though, I didn't have much time to play with him."

Sota wrapped the last piece of bandage around Kagome's waist and fastened it. He then gave it a gentle tap to ensure that it wouldn't get loose before he looked up at Kagome, eyes sparkling with interest.

"Why is that?" He asked, genuinely curious as he remained seated on the ground in front of Kagome, his elbow propped on his knee.

"Well, Sesshomaru tried to kill them." Kagome told him, and Sota's eyes widened out of surprise. He clearly didn't expect that, even though he knew that Sesshomaru had tried to kill Inuyasha in the past, but that was something entirely different. Inuyasha was still a child, what could he have possibly done for Sesshomaru to kill him?

"What? Why?" Sota asked, not believing his own ears.

Kagome exhaled deeply as she pulled her knees upwards so that she could rest her chin on them, her eyes softening. Whereas it felt good to talk with someone about it, it was not easy to do so.

Talking about it made it real, and even though it was in the past, it actually happened, and Kagome actually lived through it.

"He blames them for their fathers death. Inu no Taisho died to protect Izayoi-hime and Inuyasha, and Sesshomaru only seemed it fit to take their lives in return for the one they took." She explained, a shiver running down the length of her spine as she thought back to the past weeks events.

She could still remember Izayoi's shaking form, the sheer fright in her eyes and Inuyasha's wails. It was all so clear and vivid and Kagome knew that the pictures wouldn't leave her mind anytime soon.

"Wow, that's messed up." Sota mumbled. "So what happened? He didn't kill them, did he?"

Kagome shook her head. "He didn't." She confirmed. "I reasoned with him and he spared him. They now live at the village that I brought them to, though I am not sure whether they're going to stay there or not."

Sota nodded, clearly pleased by that piece of information. "It must have been hard for him to spare them. I mean, technically they are the reason for their fathers death, even though they didn't consider him sacrificing himself for their sake, so he must have been pretty mad."

"He was." Kagome agreed as she thought back to the Daiyoukai. "Sesshomaru now has to keep the Western Lands stable and keep watch over them on is own while proving that he is worthy of taking over his fathers position. It's not an easy task, especially since he's on his own." She admitted, her lips pursed into a thin line. She could only imagine what hardships Sesshomaru would have to face and even though that didn't justify his intent on killing Inuyasha and his mother, she could somehow understand his anger.

"Was he the one who hurt you?" Sota asked, pointing at her freshly bandaged stomach and at that, Kagome's lips curled up into a small amused smile.

"No, he actually saved me from getting killed by the panther youkai that did it." She revealed, earning a confused look from Sota in return.

"Wait, Sesshomaru saved you? Why would he do that, especially since he wanted to kill Inuyasha and his mother?" Sota inquired, clearly confused and Kagome merely groaned in return, just as equally confused as he was.

"I don't know either. Well, I guess it' because I treated him when he was about to die and he felt obligated to save my life in return so that he wouldn't owe me one." Kagome guessed, feeling that this reason made most sense.

Sota in return arched a brow, surprised. "Well it does make sense. Judging by what you told me about him he is someone who doesn't like to be indebted to others. Though I wonder why you were sent back to his time in the first place. Maybe to prevent him from killing Inuyasha and dying?" He wondered, and Kagome once more sighed.

"Probably, though I don't think that the well sent me back just to ensure that Sesshomaru didn't die. It wouldn't send me back after almost two years just because of this one incident." Kagome told him, feeling restless. She felt like this was only one of many more times to come where the well would sent her back to the past and somehow, she had the feeling that this quest would change her life in a way that the last one didn't.

And she didn't know if she was ready for that.

"How did you know that the well would send you back anyway?" Sota asked as he leaned back onto his hands, looking at Kagome in wonder. He still remembered how he woke up and found her letter just to make a mad dash for the well, the letter laying forgotten on his bed. Sota was scared that the well wouldn't allow Kagome to return, that he wouldn't get the chance to see his sister again and even though he knew that this was her destiny and that Kagome would never turn a blind eye to it, he didn't consider it fair. He wasn't the ten year old boy he was back then when Kagome just started her quest with Inuyasha and the others. No, he grew older and mature during the years that his sister spent traveling back and forth until she eventually fulfilled her quest and spent months crying for her lost friends that were beyond her reach after the well closed.

He had seen her hurting already, and he was scared that this time, it may even fully break her.

His sister deserved to live a happy life and just when all of them believed that she could finally start fresh, the well once more opened and sent her back.

What was it that Kagome needed to do before she would finally get to live a happy life?

"I felt the well open and left, it all happened rather suddenly but I wasn't going to question it. It always had its reasons for sending me back so I figured that my job as the Shikon Miko wasn't done yet and I still had something left to do." Kagome explained, resting her cheek on her knees as she looked at Sota with a raised brow. "Why?

Sota shrugged. "Dunno. I just think that it's strange that you didn't get a hunch some time ago, like some sort of premonition, you know?" He said, and Kagome remained silent.

She hadn't had a hunch the first time it happened back when she was only fifteen years old but then again, it happened _because_ she turned fifteen in the first place. Maybe this time there was a reason as to why it opened now, on this very day, but she guessed that she would never find out, even if there was one.

She suddenly remembered Saki's words back at the Museum that she visited together with her class the day the well opened.

 _Not yet, but she will._

Her eyes narrowed as a weird feeling overcame her. There was also the time when she felt a youki just as they were about to enter the museum, but back then she didn't think much of it because demons didn't exist in her era.

Something was awfully off.

"Sis, what's wrong?"

Kagome's lips thinned as she looked at Sota with brooding eyes. "Well, there have actually been a thing or two that day when I went on that trip to the museum that may be related to that." Kagome admitted, and Sota instantly perked up upon hearing her words.

"Really? Like what?" He asked, tilting his head to the sight as Kagome lifted her head from her knees to properly look at Sota.

"Back then I thought that I felt a demonic aura brush against my reiki but I brushed it off, thinking that it was only my imagination since in this era, demons don't exist." Kagome started and Sota's eyes widened out of surprise.

"No way." He breathed. "So there are still demons in our time?"

Kagome merely shook her head. "I don't know, I am not quite sure. It was the first time something like this happened and it disappeared just as fast as it appeared so I don't know. I honestly don't think that they still exist though, wouldn't we have noticed?"

Sota hummed lightly. "I don't know, it depends I guess. It's unlikely but not impossible either. What speaks against it is that Inuyasha and the rest didn't seek you out in this time though, so I don't think that it's the case." He admitted, and the spark of hope that flickered in Kagome's chest disappeared into thin air upon hearing Sota's words.

"Yeah, you're probably right."

Sota, instantly noticing the shift in his sisters mood tried to brighten it again. "But didn't you say that there was another incident?"

Kagome nodded. "At the museum, one of the girls of my class asked the tour guide if the Shikon Miko returned, and she told her that she didn't yet, but would soon. At the time I didn't think much of it but now that I actually did travel back once more, it seems strange that she predicted my return the day it happened."

"That's really creepy." Sota agreed, frowning. "Maybe she simply said it to make the tale more interesting? I mean how could she have possibly known that it would happen if it didn't happen in the past yet? Considering that it is you we are talking about and this was the first time after the well closed that you returned, she couldn't have possibly known that you would return without it having happened in the past already, if you get what I mean." He explained, and Kagome waved her hand.

"Yeah, yeah, I got it." She assured him before she massaged her temples, already feeling the signs of the upcoming headache. Back then she didn't spend much time thinking about how this entire time traveling worked and simply accepted it because she was occupied with gathering the jewel shards whilst trying to keep herself alive but now that it opened again and she actually took her time to think about everything, she found it to be more confusing than it originally was.

"Oh man, this is going to be such a pain." She whined as she buried her face into her knees, Sota offering her a gentle pat on her back.

"You did it once already sis, so how bad can it be this time?" Sota said, intending to calm his sister but Kagome simply lifted her head to shoot him a look that was enough to shut him up.

"Trust me Sota, I have a feeling that this time things will get even more complicated and annoying than they did last time." Kagome told him, sighing as she stood up from the couch and grabbed her coat. "I'll try to get some sleep. Please don't tell mom that I got hurt when she wakes up tomorrow, 'kay? I don't want her to worry even more than she probably already did."

Sota gave her a salute before he as well stood up and grabbed the first aid kit. "Will do. If you need something, just call me."

Kagome, touched by her brothers concern walked over to plant a loud kiss on his cheek, earning a disgusted look by him as she pulled back. "Thanks Sota." She said, grateful to have such a caring little brother to talk and turn to.

Sota merely sighed, waving his hand in a nonchalant matter before he shooed her away. "I know, I know, I am awesome so just go to sleep sis."

Kagome chuckled before she did as told and made her way up the stairs and walked towards her room. It was in the middle of the night and as she walked past her mothers room, she couldn't help but check on her. She didn't know whether it was because she was overwhelmed by everything that had just happened and needed her mothers support, whether it was because she missed her or because she felt guilty for suddenly leaving.

Then again, it probably was a mixture of all three.

Kagome gently opened the door so that she wouldn't cause too much sound and silently walked into her mothers room. Her eyes instantly fell on her sleeping form and Kagome couldn't stop herself from smiling as she walked to stand next to her bed.

She then knelt down next to the bed and reached out to gently tuck a strand of her mothers hair out of her face, her heart clenching.

Her mother was such a brave woman and Kagome greatly looked up to her. After she had lost her husband, she tried her best to raise her and Sota on her own and with the occasional help of her sister and now, Kagome was leaving her to worry about her daughter while she was running off to travel back to the past and save the world.

Her mother deserved better than to worry about her daughter and whether she was still alive, eating enough or would ever return to her.

"I'm sorry mama." Kagome whispered, planting a soft kiss on her mothers cheek before she stood up and exited the room with a heavy heart.

Kagome then moved to enter her own room and tossed the coat to the side before she tiredly slumped down onto her bed. She buried her face into he pillow and inhaled the familiar smell as she tried to process the past weeks events.

There was so much that happened, so much for Kagome to take in and to process and she didn't know whether she should actually bother to break her head over it or if she should simply accept it.

 _No._

Kagome knew that she couldn't just accept it and go with the flow. The Kagome five years ago may have been able to do that, but the twenty year old Kagome couldn't.

The Miko sat up so that she was sitting on her bed and gazed out of the window, eyes falling onto the crescent moon that was majestically hanging in the sky, surrounded by countless little stars.

She needed to get her act together. If this really was the first out of many more times to come then she couldn't panic and instead, needed to mentally be prepared.

Kagome's eyes narrowed, determination brightening them as she balled her fists.

She would take whatever fate would throw at her without breaking. She did it once, so she could do it again.

 _If I survived last time, I will survive this one as well._

Or at least, she hoped.

The young Shikon Miko then changed into her night gown and cuddled herself into her blankets, her exhaustion taking over as the darkness lulled her into a deep slumber.

Little did the Shikon Miko know that fate had much more in store for her as well as a certain silver-haired Lord, and that her past quest only served as a preparation for what was yet to come.

* * *

A/N: I am back and _so_ incredibly sorry that it took me so long to Update. I just had a major writers block but now that I fortunately overcame it, I'll update considerably faster and more regularly. I want to thank for all the past reviews, reads, follows and favorites and hope that you will continue to support this story by following, reading, favoring and reviewing. Your reviews are what keep me motivated, so I would appreciate if you would tell me what you think of this chapter by leaving one!

I hope that you liked it and that you look forward to the next chapter as much as I do (which will be out soon!)

Once again, thanks for your support. I love you all to the moon and back!

Yours,

Sara


End file.
